Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa wins bid to regain sweeping powers

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa succeeded in a bid to restore sweeping executive powers to his office after his government won a super majority vote to amend the constitution.
 

After two days of debate in parliament, Rajapaksa’s supporters clinched 156 of 225 votes in the legislature in favor of changes that would concentrate authority in the hands of the president at the cost of the prime minister and the parliament, potentially putting at risk judicial independence and the law-making process.
 

“The 20th amendment can be considered a constitutional adjustment that undermines and lets down the sovereignty of the people,” said